Savita Halappanavar inquest: Husband accepts apology from midwife

DUBLIN — The husband of a woman who died after being denied an abortion in an Irish hospital has accepted an apology from the senior midwife, who had explained that a termination wasn’t possible because Ireland is “a Catholic country.”

Praveen Halappanavar accepted the apology Thursday after the testimony of Ann Maria Burke at a coroner’s inquest into the Oct. 28 death of 31-year-old Savita Halappanavar.

The Halappanavars repeatedly requested an abortion after doctors determined the 17-week-old fetus would die and Savita Halappanavar experienced a protracted miscarriage.

Burke testified she told the Halappanavars an abortion was not possible because of Ireland’s Catholic ethos, and was “sorry how it came across.”

Praveen Halappanavar thanked the midwife for her honesty and apology.

He made a lengthy statement Monday at the start of an investigation.

The hospital has already apologized. The inquest seeks to determine whether Halappanavar died because her miscarrying fetus was not aborted despite severe pain.

She died from blood poisoning and organ failure four days after the fetus’ heartbeat stopped and its remains were removed.

The case has sparked protests on both sides of the abortion debate in Ireland, where the practice remains outlawed except in life-threatening cases.